Weekend Warrior

Its Friday and you've worked your butt off all week at a desk staring at a screen typing for hours and hours and hours. Wouldn't it feel great to use your hands to build something great? Something you can be proud of?

This weekend is a great opportunity to make all those green changes to your house you've been thinking about. Just a little investment can save you a lot on your utility bill and allow you to feel better about your contibution to the world.

1. Start with the bathroom: Tighten that leaky faucet with a quick turn of the wrench. Place a plastic gallon milk jug filled with water in the toilet tank. Install a low-flow shower head. Caulk around any windows or in cracks in the shower tiles and tub rim. Purchase recycled toilet paper. Replace incandescent bulbs with fluorescent light bulbs.


2. Next the kitchen: Unplug, then wipe off the condensor coils on your refrigerator. Change the temperature settings on your refrigerator to relfect 36-40 degrees Fahrenheit and freezer between 0-5 degrees Fahrenheit. Take those old cleaning products out from under your sink and bring them to your town's toxic recycling center (find it in the phone book). Then replace them with cheaper, natural, effective alternatives found here. Take the kitchen garbage can out and replace it with labeled recycling cans, put one garbage can in a central area to reduce its use. You can find a list of recycleable items here to put on your fridge as a reference. Buy recycled paper towels. Replace incandescent bulbs with fluorescent bulbs.


3. Around the house: Purchase a AC/Heater timer that can be set-up to manage the temperature in your home while you're sleeping or away at work. Paint fading walls with colorful organic paint described here. Begin collecting water from the dog's bowl or other used sources to water the plants with (keep in mind, more plants are killed by over-watering than under-watering). Replace the filters on the intake for your AC/Heater Wrap your water heater in a special blanket to prevent heat from escaping. Caulk around windows and doors. Replace incandescent bulbs with fluorescent bulbs.

I could go on and on but you only have a weekend and this should keep you busy. Try to avoid using unnatural pesticides and fertilizers in your yard. Sometimes a little lime or lemon juice and water can go a long way when sprayed on the grass.

Good luck with your new projects and good job taking the initiative.